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ACOG and ACA: Investing in Women’s Health

As many of you know, I started my ACOG presidency announcing 2013 as “The Year of the Woman” because for the first time we, as a nation, are investing in women’s health care with the Affordable Care Act. It is an investment in our future when we provide all women with preconception care, prenatal care, and contraception.

I spent last week in Washington, DC, discussing the impact of environmental chemicals on our reproductive health with our elected officials. And what a week it was! I saw firsthand the dedication of the furloughed employees who were trying to help everyone. I heard the frustration of many DC residents as they faced reduced work hours and uncertainty about what the next day or week will bring.

Amidst all of this chaos, the ACA’s health insurance exchanges opened for business. Yes, there are going to be some difficulties along the road with implementing health care reform, but there will be fewer of them when we work together to make health care changes a success.

I was in the hair salon recently and found out that the women working there had no health coverage. I opened my iPad and showed them how to enroll in Covered California. In no time, they logged in, found affordable benefits, and were singing its praises. These are working women who had gone without coverage because they could not afford it and their small businesses did not provide health benefits. All of these women—some young, some single moms—all shared one uncertainty: What would they do if they became sick? They had not even considered getting preventive health care.

We need our government to open for business, we need to work on our health care delivery system, and we need to remind everyone that women are finally getting what we said is essential all along: Screening for cervical and breast cancer, screening for intimate partner violence and depression, contraception coverage, and prenatal care. Worrying about not being able to afford or even get health insurance because of a pre-existing condition can now be a thing of the past. Losing your health insurance coverage during the course of a difficult disease when you need it the most can also be a worry of the past. What a wonderful year!

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About Jeanne A. Conry, MD, PhD

Dr. Conry is assistant physician in chief at The Permanente Medical Group in Roseville, CA, and associate clinical professor of ob-gyn at the University of California, Davis. She has been a practicing ob-gyn with The Permanente Medical Group for more than 20 years. Dr. Conry was ACOG President May 2013–May 2014.